SOLVED Cobalt Drive problems…..SOLVED……..FINALLY!

Jeff C

Jeff C

Active member
New member here and also new to building pedals, as you will shortly see. I previously built a BYOC Reverb pedal kit successfully and it sounds great. I’ve also built from scratch a Strat, a Tele, a 59 LP, and an LP Junior. So, I wanted a blues driver pedal and thought I’d take a whack at the Cobalt Drive from PedalPCB. The directions are not as detailed as in a kit so I’ve had some difficulty. Clearly in over my head. I managed to procure the parts from the list (not without trial and error on my part) from Tayda. I mistakenly bought a switch without solder lugs so after consulting a patient, helpful friend, bought a daughter board and did my best to figure out how to marry the two - having no skills whatsoever in electronics. History major. I have managed to assemble it but I get nothing from it except static pops when I plug it in. Bypass doesn’t work. No idea what I’ve done wrong but I suspect it revolves around needing to do more with the daughter board on the switch. But what do I know? Here’s a couple of pics (the power jack is not there but I did connect it to test). And I haven’t installed the LED yet. Any and all suggestions are eagerly welcomed. You may recomemd I should just start over but I hope not….. Thank you!
855EE297-D464-47F8-880D-F0D8B9C40E15.jpeg 15E06C0D-93DB-4AE9-944D-BA1BED3416FB.jpeg
 
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It’s hard to tell what’s going on with your footswitch, clearer pictures might be helpful. However your input and output don’t appear to be wired correctly.


also take a look through this work through.

https://forum.pedalpcb.com/threads/...s-when-an-issue-arises-with-a-pcb-build.7081/

Congrats on working on gettting a pcb and supplying your own components. I know when I went from BYOC to the next level it was very intimidating. Take your time with the troubleshooting and don’t get overly frustrated. Most issues can be worked through.
 
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If you still have issues after rewiring the jacks post a closer pic of the 3PDT breakout board showing the labels.

They aren't all exactly the same or directly compatible, but can usually be made to work regardless.
 
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You most like will need an audio probe and trace the circuit to find your problem area. If not now, then definitely in the future for other troubleshooting.

TUTORIAL - Troubleshooting 101

There comes a time for every builder to spend multiple hours soldering, wiring, and breadboarding a certain circuit just to have it work incorrectly, if at all. This could happen on your first build or any build after that. This write up is to help you in your quest to figure out why it isn't...
forum.pedalpcb.com forum.pedalpcb.com
 
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BuddytheReow said:
You most like will need an audio probe and trace the circuit to find your problem area. If not now, then definitely in the future for other troubleshooting.

TUTORIAL - Troubleshooting 101

There comes a time for every builder to spend multiple hours soldering, wiring, and breadboarding a certain circuit just to have it work incorrectly, if at all. This could happen on your first build or any build after that. This write up is to help you in your quest to figure out why it isn't...
forum.pedalpcb.com forum.pedalpcb.com
Click to expand...
Ok, I think I’ll give the probe a try but I’m a little unclear from the instructions about how to put it together. I’ve got the end of a guitar cable, a 100n cap (ceramic is ok?) and alternatively, a jack. See pic. I clip one end of the cap to the live wire on the cable and use the other end as the probe, right? If so, that’s where I get lost. Do I power up the pedal, plug it into an amp, and then plug the cable into a guitar, using the loose cap end as the probe? If so, I can see how my cut-off cable is too short to use and would have to go the jack route. If so, to what do I ground the sleeve? The tutorial just says put an alligator clip on it. If I can use the cable, I have to ground that, too, no (the tutorial didn’t say either way)? Finally, nothing goes in the input jack on the pedal itself? Sorry to be such an ignoramus. My 11th grade Algebra II/Trig teacher wrote in my report card: “I recommend a Jeffrey NOT continue in mathematics.”
? 914BBE8E-29A1-4642-973A-5B3D18D4C0A1.jpeg
 
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carlinb17 said:
Can you remove the daughterboard and wire it per specs?

I’m not familiar with that daughterboard and it’s traces. I’m sure someone here is.
Click to expand...
Really want to avoid doing that. I do have another switch with lugs instead of pins so I could avoid the whole daughter board thing. But if it turns out the daughterboard isn’t the problem……..back to square one…
 
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Jeff C said:
Really want to avoid doing that. I do have another switch with lugs instead of pins so I could avoid the whole daughter board thing. But if it turns out the daughterboard isn’t the problem……..back to square one…
Click to expand...
It’s not square one because it’s questionable and you have now ruled it out
 
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carlinb17 said:
It’s not square one because it’s questionable and you have now ruled it out
Click to expand...
Yeah, I get that. Pardon my beginner’s question, but if the signal gets through when the switch is in the off position and it’s wired per the directions, doesn’t that mean it works? Or I guess it could just be a defective daughterboard, in which case you are soooo right…..
 
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Jeff C said:
Ok, I think I’ll give the probe a try but I’m a little unclear from the instructions about how to put it together. I’ve got the end of a guitar cable, a 100n cap (ceramic is ok?) and alternatively, a jack. See pic. I clip one end of the cap to the live wire on the cable and use the other end as the probe, right? If so, that’s where I get lost. Do I power up the pedal, plug it into an amp, and then plug the cable into a guitar, using the loose cap end as the probe? If so, I can see how my cut-off cable is too short to use and would have to go the jack route. If so, to what do I ground the sleeve? The tutorial just says put an alligator clip on it. If I can use the cable, I have to ground that, too, no (the tutorial didn’t say either way)? Finally, nothing goes in the input jack on the pedal itself? Sorry to be such an ignoramus. My 11th grade Algebra II/Trig teacher wrote in my report card: “I recommend a Jeffrey NOT continue in mathematics.”
?View attachment 25927
Click to expand...
The plug for the probe will go into an amp or other speaker, so you'll need to extend the wire on it. Yes, it needs to be grounded and an alligator clip of that lead to something else that's grounded will work. The live wire (tip) should be soldered to one end of a 100nf cap and the other end of that cap is your probe. The caps purpose is to filter out DC (guitar signal is AC).

Your input signal can be anything but will most likely be your guitar. The way the probe works is to check if signal is going through a particular portion of the circuit. You will have to know how to read a schematic. My general advice is to start at the beginning of the circuit, hit a note, and test at each active component (think opamp or transistor). Once you find a place with no signal, that's where a potential problem area is.
 
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